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Endangered species, endangered people

Greta Liscio

The importance of protecting endangered wildlife and biodiversity.

 

Protect the wild within and outside of you. Don’t try to tame it. Let it be free. Reconnect with your essence, which is feral.


At times, it feels like we’ve lost the signal and logged out of reality. We are shifting towards a technocratic paradigm of humankind. It feels like sleepwalking, being detached from our world, being lured more and more into our artificial paradises. Sometimes it almost seems as if we wouldn’t be part of our planet, as if we wouldn’t live and depend on it. We have put ourselves at the center of a man-made pyramidal illusion. A human world escaping from nature, fearing it, othering it, controlling and dominating it. 




What is it about the wild that terrifies us?


As a species, we have been flourishing and progressively improving our condition. Nevertheless, we have grown to be a pretty destructive kind. In our expansion, we are creating unbalanced flows, carelessly playing with entropy, and changing the very structures of the Earth. As much as we are aiming for a more inclusive culture, as well as for societies where tolerance and acceptance are inspiring values, we struggle to become more loving both towards each other and to our surroundings. Our group behavior is delusional, irrational, and self-endangering. 


Ironically enough, we describe ourselves as the only intelligent species on Earth. And yet we are ignoring our own extinction risk, driven by an uncontrollable thirst for growth and dominance. We put ourselves above the animals and the natural world. And as we speculate on other species’ consciousness, our own species’ behavior displays worrying unconsciousness and avoidance. We pretend we are not, but we are more animals than ever. 


Duality in a world of increasing complexity and the value of limits


Our world is complex. It’s full of contradictions and synergies. And, unfortunately, it looks like we can’t escape Duality. We, humans, have a right to exist. Nevertheless, our very existence often means the end of other existing beings. Not only in terms of food but also in terms of available space. We aim for infinite growth on a finite planet. In this context, re-evaluating the value of limits may give us some direction for the future. We can live our lives and, at the same time, respect and protect other forms of life, that all depends on our take on rights. 


What and who has a right to a dignified existence?  


Democratizing rights to dignity and existence in life and in death would mean that other beings and landscapes deserve respect and have a right to exist and to stop existing in dignity as we do, regardless of their role to us. Life is also the end of life. There can be dignity in death, but there is none in alienation, exploitation, enslavement, and annihilation. When making utilitaristic decisions we have the choice of considering the interests of everyone and everything involved. Animism, respect for the creation of God, respect for the Tao, respect for Nature. Call it the way you want. There is not necessarily a contradiction in our existence and the respect and celebration of the magical world around us. Many would agree that we share the same amount of joy, pain, and the same will to live as other animals. As well as the same survival instinct as all other species, from plants to bacteria. 


In any case, we are very far away from recognizing other species' rights. There certainly is controversy in being an omnivore hyper-predator and a rational being capable of empathy. Oblivion is indeed easier than accountability. Black and white is easier than surrendering to complex relations. Vegan or careless, destroyer or savior. Exploitation or protection. We seem to be unable to understand anything in between. It seems that striving for balance and compromise requires more capabilities than extremism. Granting other species the right to dignity would be in contrast with our nature, someone might think. Anyhow, respect and acknowledgment would be a step in the right direction to restore balance. It would be fair to them, but also to us. 


But why is it important to protect endangered wildlife species?


Ethics aside, protecting biodiversity and the wild has dual importance for the development of our species. On the one hand, biodiversity makes us resilient. It helps us respond to crises in the food system in anticipation of changes in our landscapes and ecosystems. On the other hand, it increases our capacities, and our interior growth as individuals, and collectively, as a kind. Democratizing the right to dignity and existence would help us identify as part of the natural world, not above it. We have domesticated ourselves. We have silenced the wild animal within us. The cultural shift of dominance has shaped us into a power-addicted society enslaved by productivity, where power stands for subjugation and control. But there is still a low animal voice within us, that awakens when in contact with Nature. What if our real power would manifest through acceptance, respect, and co-existence? 


Sadly, by becoming the dominating species we have pushed many other species to the brink of extinction. And specifically, the ones we either can’t eat, can’t use for medical purposes or entertainment. As for the rest, the wild remnants, we have been an exterminator, or, more seldom, a protector. The wilderness is disappearing at faster and faster rates, and with wilderness, species habitats. In the WWF “Living Planet Report”, estimates calculated an average biodiversity loss of 58% from 1970 to 2012, and 69% in 2022. In just ten years we've erased from Earth another 11% of the totality of registered species since the 70s. A growing number of species are considered threatened by extinction. What will happen to us if we decide to erase, let’s say 80% of all other species, and keep only the ones that we think we need, such as domesticated and farm animals? Well, a decrease in species means a decrease in biodiversity.


What exactly is biodiversity, and why is it important for us?


Biodiversity is a term that describes the variety of life on Earth. It encompasses the genetic variability of a single species, the diversity of species and environments. Biodiversity is also an indicator of ecosystems’ health. Its decrease tells us that the environmental services provided by ecosystems we rely on, such as air purity, soil fertility, carbon storage, and crop health, are at risk. There is a book by Enric Sala called The Nature of Nature, that brilliantly explains why biodiversity is important to us. In his book, Sala informs the readers about his findings on the correlation between ecosystems’ health and resilience, their ability to store carbon and biodiversity. Ecosystems with more species function better. Apparently, diversity is good. 


But what does this mean to us? Well, the decrease in Biodiversity doesn’t only tell us that most wildlife species are endangered. It also tells us that if we don’t act soon enough, we will soon be an endangered species too.



If have a business and you care about conservation and sustainable development you can make your contribution by simply working with Natriarch! Find out more about our services on our performance marketing page.


 

Bibliography


Atkins, J. and Atkins, B. (2018) Around the World in 80 Species : Exploring the Business of Extinction. First edition. edn. Boca Raton, FL: Routledge.


Foden, W. B., Young, B. E., Akçakaya, H. R., Garcia, R. A., Hoffmann, A. A., Stein, B. A., Thomas, C. D., Wheatley, C. J., Bickford, D., Carr, J. A., Hole, D. G., Martin, T. G., Pacifici, M., Pearce‐Higgins, J. W., Platts, P. J., Visconti, P., Watson, J. E. M. and Huntley, B. (2019) 'Climate change vulnerability assessment of species', Wiley interdisciplinary reviews. Climate change, 10(1), pp. n/a.


Golden Kroner, R. E., Qin, S., Cook, C. N., Krithivasan, R., Pack, S. M., Bonilla, O. D., Cort-Kansinally, K. A., Coutinho, B., Feng, M., Martínez Garcia, M. I., He, Y., Kennedy, C. J., Lebreton, C., Ledezma, J. C., Lovejoy, T. E., Luther, D. A., Parmanand, Y., Ruíz-Agudelo, C. A., Yerena, E., Morón Zambrano, V. and Mascia, M. B. (2019) 'The uncertain future of protected lands and waters', Science, 364(6443), pp. 881.


Sala, E., Charles III, K. o. G. B., & Wilson, E. O. (2020). The nature of nature: why we need the wild. Washington, D.C., National Geographic


WWF (2022) ‘Living Planet Report’, https://wwflpr.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/lpr_2022_full_report.pdf (Accessed: 01.04.2023)


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